This story is completely implausible; all manner of animals that would normally occupy different habitats live together, and a smart little rabbit tricks the Tawny Scrawny (hungry) Lion into becoming a pescetarian. (For some reason, just as would later be the case in the movie "Madagascar," we are supposed to treat all animals as sentient and sympathise with their desire not to be eaten--unless they're fish, in which case they might as well be broccoli). However, it is beautifully illustrated, and has great lessons to teach about delayed gratification, bravery, and clever problem-solving. ( )

This piece of literary work isn't like the work that has been made over the last twenty years. This story didn't shy away from the realities that the lion is the king of the jungle and sits atop the food chain. It explains that lions are always hungry because they are constantly chasing bears, elephants, zebras, and monkeys to eat. Then he tries to eat 10 fat rabbits but they feed him carrot stew instead. The lion basically becomes a vegetarian since he doesn't have to chase carrot stew around the jungle. I don't think this book would be a success nowadays but for the time period it was written in, I'm sure the message was acceptable. ( )

Now, like many stories of that era featuring "wild animals", the geography is complete nonsense. Lions coexist with bears and kangaroos. Yes, this is annoying. How annoying probably has a direct relationship to whether or not your beloved Mama read you this book when you were little :) And, like many stories of that era, the biology is also a bit skewed - Lions who eat carrot and fish stew will not be happy and plump, they will be even scrawnier because lions are obligate carnivores. Eating meat isn't something they do to be mean, it's something they do because they have no choice.

So, you know, if you're looking for realism, this is not the book for you.

If you're looking for a cute little story about how friendship tames wild beasts and makes everybody happy... well! This one is great. It's a bit wordy, so consider your audience. ( )

Genre: FantasyAge Appropriateness: PrimaryMedia: Acrylic?Review: This story is of a lion that chases everyone in the jungle trying to catch his dinner. He runs so much that he is scrawny and the more he ate, the scrawnier he became. The animals delegated the rabbit to talk things over with the lion and the rabbit ended up training the lion not to chase after everyone in the jungle anymore, but to eat carrot stew like the rabbit family did. This is a fantasy because the main characters of the story are animals and act like humans by talking and such. ( )